Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Galle

For one person, living is cheaper in Galle: $464 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $42,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
23

Cost of Living Index in Galle
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Galle Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Galle

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$464

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Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Galle

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in London and in Galle actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,986 in London versus $464 in Galle.

London $3,986
Galle $464

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,791 in London versus $756 in Galle.

London $5,791
Galle $756

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,595 in London versus $1,047 in Galle.

London $7,595
Galle $1,047

Living in London is roughly 759% more expensive than in Galle, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: London is 195% above, Galle is 66% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$1.55 LKR 513

1572.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$23.95 LKR 7,934

344.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$7.37 LKR 2,441

45.32%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$1.85 LKR 613

195.68%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 £2.23

$0.67 LKR 223

343.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$0.25 LKR 82.6

780.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$1.23 LKR 406

642.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$1.48 LKR 489

436.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.64 LKR 545

13.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$0.57 LKR 189

263.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$0.82 LKR 270

195.12%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$1.67 LKR 552

204.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$13.59 LKR 4,501

-5.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$4.85 LKR 1,606

115.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$7.27 LKR 2,408

132.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$6.46 LKR 2,139

-51.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$0.78 LKR 258

79.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$4.47 LKR 1,481

-31.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$1.34 LKR 442

144.03%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.04 LKR 344

51.92%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$0.83 LKR 274

109.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$0.95 LKR 314

47.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$0.42 LKR 139

328.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$10.10 LKR 3,346

130.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$9.07 LKR 3,005

43.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$1.95 LKR 645

62.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$3.01 LKR 997

46.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$0.15 LKR 48.05

2613.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$0.29 LKR 95.1

1824.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$0.29 LKR 94.8

1058.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.57

$0.88 LKR 292

6348.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$1.32 LKR 438

61.36%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.2K £28.6K

$36.6K LKR 12.1M

4.46%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.9K £30.7K

$39.9K LKR 13.2M

2.59%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$372 £279

$59.5 LKR 19.7K

525.79%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$17.82 £13.37

$4.33 LKR 1,436

311.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$21.07 LKR 6,978

91.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$4.60 LKR 1,523

285.65%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,864 £2,149

$38.04 LKR 12.6K

7429.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$1,206 LKR 399.3K

2830.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$18.27 LKR 6,052

524.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$16.40 LKR 5,433

230.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$80.5 LKR 26.7K

54.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$41.26 LKR 13.7K

295.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,950

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,834

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,019

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,778

$305 LKR 101.1K

1550.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

12.69

-62.65%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Galle: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Galle

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Galle

$85 18.3% 80.3% $345

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Galle

$69 15% 82.1% $318

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Galle

$228 49.1% 34.8% $122

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Galle

$2.3 * 0.5% 99.2% $283

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Galle

$70 15.2% 65.7% $135

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Galle

$9.2 * 2% 90.4% $86

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

London pays 1550% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $107 in London vs $24.00 in Galle for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $228 per month, with Galle cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇱🇰 Galle

🕒 Local time

19:21 7:21 PM

23:51 11:51 PM

4 h 30 min ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

100,000

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Galle 8,810 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Galle

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

London vs Galle: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Galle is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. The 759% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 1550% higher in London, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $2,864 in London versus $38.04 in Galle. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Galle – a meal for two runs $24.00 versus $107 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $464 in Galle versus $3,986 in London, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Galle but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Galle the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Galle is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in London, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Galle gentler on the wallet – expenses run 759% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.